Descripción del proyecto
Los cultivos regionales como alternativa competitiva a los cultivos de cereales
La creciente demanda de cultivos de cereales para usos alimentarios o bioenergéticos lleva a analizar los valores nutritivos de los cultivos huérfanos. Estos cultivos son importantes a escala regional, pero carecen de un mercado mundial. El tef es un cultivo comestible conocido en Etiopía por su elevado valor nutritivo y su resistencia a las condiciones climáticas extremas. El proyecto SUPERTEFF, financiado con fondos europeos, se propone estudiar las posibilidades de transformar el tef de un cultivo huérfano a un supercultivo competitivo internacionalmente. Los resultados del estudio aportarán una nueva solución sostenible para producir supercultivos que atiendan nuestras preocupaciones en materia de seguridad alimentaria mundial y agricultura sostenible.
Objetivo
Food security is one of the prime concerns of the world as the production is affected by increase in demand for cereal crops as food and bioenergy resources. In order to maximize productivity, one strategy is to identify and improve indigenous crops (orphan crops) which are often ignored. Orphan crops (e.g. teff, millet) possess better nutritional and adaptive traits than other cereal crops (e.g. rice, wheat). Teff, Ethiopia’s most important indigenous cereal crop is recently gaining attention among farmers and consumers over other cereals due to its natural gluten-free nature and its adaptation to tough environmental conditions. The high market price for its grains and straw make it a valuable cash crop but has received less attention on research and funding. The main objective of “SUPERTEFF” is to apply omics and gene editing strategies for the improvement of teff. The key objectives of the study are (1) characterization of disparate teff germplasm for agronomically important traits using image-based phenomics (2) to explore the nutrient diversity in teff cultivars using high-throughput metabolomics (3) metabolite-genome-wide association studies (m-GWAS) to understand the genotype to phenotype relation (4) to develop a CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing platform in teff with prime focus to lodging. The proposed study will provide a new paradigm in linking metabolic status to gene expression and will provide valid targets for CRISPR gene editing strategies in teff to convert it from an orphan crop to a super crop which will bare comparison to other established cereal crops. The outputs of this project will result in bridging the gap between orphan crops and other cereal crops in terms of sustainable yield and resilience to environmental conditions, whereby addressing the growing concerns of farmers and consumers across the globe. This project aims to strengthen the EU economy, by placing it in the fore-front of global food security and sustainable agriculture.
Ámbito científico
- agricultural sciencesagriculture, forestry, and fisheriesagriculturesustainable agriculture
- medical and health sciencesmedical biotechnologygenetic engineeringgene therapy
- medical and health scienceshealth sciencesnutrition
- natural sciencesmathematicspure mathematicsarithmeticsprime numbers
- agricultural sciencesagriculture, forestry, and fisheriesagriculturegrains and oilseedscereals
Palabras clave
Programa(s)
Régimen de financiación
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)Coordinador
SY23 3BF Aberystwyth
Reino Unido